I was reborn after my cousin stole my life.

Chapter 88: Farce

Upon hearing Wu Yufen's voice, Yuan Juan's heart skipped a beat!

Aunt Zhou opened the door and greeted him with a smile, "Officer Wu, what brings you here? Have you eaten yet? We're eating right now. If you haven't, come and have some with us."

Officer Wu looked serious. She didn't have time to eat; she was still hungry because of this matter.

"Auntie, I need to ask your daughter-in-law something."

Aunt Zhou's smile froze, and her heart pounded. Something was off about Officer Wu's expression.

"What do you want with her?"

She glanced at Yuan Juan sitting at the dining table, wondering if this spendthrift woman was spreading rumors again.

She immediately remembered the topic her family had been discussing earlier.

Yuan Juan was filled with anxiety: "Sister-in-law, what's wrong?"

After Wu Yufen entered the room, she pulled up a chair, sat down, placed her hands on her lap, and stared at Yuan Juan seriously, asking, "Comrade Yuan Juan, are you involved in the rumors circulating in the compound recently about Battalion Commander Jiang?"

Yuan Juan's eyelids twitched, and she chuckled awkwardly, "Why is my sister-in-law asking such a question out of the blue? What rumors are circulating about Battalion Commander Jiang? My husband, mother-in-law, and I only returned from our hometown a few days ago, and we haven't heard any rumors!"

She was so focused on responding to Wu Yufen's words, trying her best to dispel Wu Yufen's suspicions about her, that she forgot that she herself had just brought up the matter at the dinner table.

He clearly knows better than anyone else, yet he insists he's never heard of it.

Aunt Zhou and Zhou Lei exchanged a glance, both of them filled with anger.

Is there even a need to guess?

Officer Wu has come all the way to our home to ask questions. Would he come to our door if there wasn't a reason?

Let's look at Yuan Juan's performance...

No matter what, Yuan Juan is a member of the Zhou family. Even if it really was Yuan Juan who said it, we still have to smooth things over!

We can't let her influence Zhou Lei.

"That's right, Officer Wu. We've only been back for a few days. As soon as we got back, we started settling in at home. Yuan Juan caught a cold when we went back to our hometown and has been sick ever since. She's barely left the house these past few days. Do you think there's some misunderstanding?" Aunt Zhou began to try and smooth things over for Yuan Juan.

Officer Wu glanced at Yuan Juan's face; she didn't look like she'd been sick for several days.

Zhou Lei also said, "Sister-in-law, Yuan Juan isn't a gossip, this matter definitely has nothing to do with her."

Wu Yufen's gaze swept over them. "Whether there's a connection or not, we can't just rely on your own words. Our family committee values ​​evidence. We certainly won't wrongly accuse anyone. Making mistakes isn't terrible; as long as you admit them and correct them promptly, that's fine. What we fear are those who repeatedly refuse to learn from their mistakes and deny them, tarnishing the reputation of us military families time and time again!"

Aunt Zhou reached out and took Wu Yufen's hand: "That's true, but Officer Wu, this really has nothing to do with Yuan Juan."

Rumors are like that; they spread from one person to another. There are so many people in the compound, even if Yuan Juan said it, they might not be able to produce any evidence.

Wu Yufen is definitely trying to scam Yuan Juan.

Yuan Juan nodded, "I really don't know. I think I heard people talking about Battalion Commander Jiang, but I didn't go up and say anything."

Zhou Lei: "Officer Wu, everyone knows that Yuan Juan and Battalion Commander Jiang's wife have a bad relationship. It's not a secret in the compound. Did you hear something from someone that led you to ask Yuan Juan about this, thinking that she might be the one who did it?"

He sighed after he finished speaking and continued, "It's true that there are conflicts, but we can't pin the blame on Yuan Juan just because of this."

Officer Wu stood up and dusted off his clothes. "Alright, you can stop talking now. Yuan Juan, the daughters of Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang both said they heard you say that while they were in the public restroom. I'll call them over right now..."

Upon hearing those two names, Yuan Juan became extremely nervous. "How could they say such things? When did I ever say anything like that?"

"Why didn't you mention it? Just last Friday, in our public restroom, you were squatting in the stall next to me, and I was talking to Battalion Commander Wang about how Yuan Xiu kept going to Political Commissar Wang's house. You said something like, 'No wonder Battalion Commander Jiang got promoted, it turns out Yuan Xiu flattered Teacher Shen to get it!' If we hadn't heard you say that, how would we have known whether Battalion Commander Jiang got promoted or not?"

The two people Wu Yufen mentioned lived in the family building. In less than two minutes, they were called over. As soon as the two arrived, they began to confront Yuan Juan.

"Exactly! We weren't really talking about anything else, we were just curious why Yuan Xiu kept going to Political Commissar Wang's house. If you hadn't said that, who would have thought of that?"

"I didn't say that! I never said that!" Yuan Juan retorted loudly, her face flushed.

"The public restrooms in our building all have doors, so why do you assume the person squatting next to you is me? You've clearly mistaken me for someone else!"

Battalion Commander Chen's wife immediately retorted, "So what if there's a chance? We're not deaf; that voice is clearly yours! You have a southern accent; we can tell right away!"

Yuan Juan: "I'm not the only Southern wife in this building, why do you all assume it's me!"

"It's you! It's you! Among all the southern wives in our building, you're the youngest. I can recognize your voice!" Battalion Commander Wang's wife jumped up and down, pointing at Yuan Juan, her finger almost touching Yuan Juan's nose.

Yuan Juan quickly clutched her stomach and took two steps back: "You're framing me! I'm going to report you to the authorities!"

The families of Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang were furious. If Yuan Juan didn't admit it, then they would be the ones who started spreading rumors!

"How could you be so wicked! You're jealous of Yuan Xiu, so you deliberately speak ill of her! And you won't admit it! In broad daylight, why doesn't lightning strike you dead?!"

"Exactly! That heartless, rotten bastard! No wonder he can't compare to Yuan Xiu in anything!"

The women from Battalion Commander Chen's family got into a fight with Yuan Juan.

Yuan Juan had initially pretended to be weak, but as their insults became increasingly offensive, she couldn't help but start hurling insults back at them!

The Zhou family was in complete chaos.

Aunt Zhou was so angry that she had a headache.

Zhou Lei, a grown man, didn't want to argue with the women, so he could only stand by and protect Yuan Juan, muttering, "Stop cursing, let's talk this out."

If Wu Yufen hadn't stood in the middle, the two sides would have started fighting!

The noise was so loud that the neighbors who heard it all came over.

Outside the Zhou family's gate, some had their sleeves tucked in, while others carried bowls; all were there to watch the spectacle.

A cacophony of voices erupted: "I think it might have been Yuan Juan who said it!"

"It's also possible that the Chen family misheard."

"You can't be mistaken, can you? My ears are sharp. In this building, I can recognize who's speaking just by listening to their voice."

"Yuan Juan has quite a sharp tongue; she's different from the ones I've met before."

"I told you she was faking it, but you wouldn't believe me. Now you've seen the truth!"

Seeing that the argument was getting increasingly heated, Wu Yufen slammed her hand on the table and shouted, "Shut up, all of you!"

The two sides continued to hurl insults, only their voices were slightly quieter.

Just then, Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang arrived and pulled their wives aside to scold them.

"What's all the noise about? Aren't you embarrassed enough already?!"

"You were asked to be a witness, not to argue. Why are you arguing with them?"

After reprimanding their respective wives, Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang apologized to Zhou Lei: "Old Zhou, I'm sorry. Look, it was just a small matter, I didn't expect it to escalate like this."

Zhou Lei was extremely embarrassed and released Yuan Juan's hand. "It's okay, it's okay, we were both at fault."

Battalion Commander Chen muttered, "We did nothing wrong! The one who did it is the one who won't admit it!"

Battalion Commander Chen glared at his wife. "Shut up. Officer Wu will find out who spread those rumors. Just say what you need to say. What's there to argue about?"

Battalion Commander Wang was also talking about his wife: "How many times have I told you to ignore the gossip you hear outside, but you just won't listen. Why are you talking about these things with people? You're just wasting your time all day."

The two men appeared to be talking about their wives, but everyone knew what they were really saying.

Zhou Lei was even more embarrassed.

Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang apologized to him, but not for their wives pointing out Yuan Juan; rather, they apologized for coming to the Zhou family to cause trouble.

Judging from their expressions, it was clear that they believed their wives.

I'm afraid this relationship won't be able to be maintained in the future.

Thinking of this, he felt resentment towards Yuan Juan.

This farce ultimately ended with both sides unable to resolve the issue.

The families of Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang only heard voices but did not see anyone. Yuan Juan denied it to the death, and Wu Yufen could not produce any more evidence.

But everyone knows that those words were almost certainly spoken by Yuan Juan.

In the end, Wu Yufen criticized their wives in front of Battalion Commander Chen and Battalion Commander Wang, and also gave Yuan Juan a dressing down, and the matter was pretty much over.

Wu Yufen reported the matter to Chairman Gu, and within two days, the Parents' Committee posted a notice on the bulletin board.

The notice did not name anyone or explain why it was being criticized. It simply stated that some military family members lacked awareness and that the family committee would launch a campaign to improve the overall awareness of military families and encourage their active participation.

Simply put, it means we need to have a lesson on moral and ethical conduct.

What are military families afraid of?

Eight out of ten people have to answer, because they're afraid of going to class.

Not only was the content of the class so suffocating that it made people want to doze off, but the teacher would also call on students at any time to engage in self-criticism.

But you can't not go; if you don't go, it means you're not being proactive.

This ideological and moral education class is different from the usual parent committee meetings. At other times, you can do your own thing during the meetings, but we have to go to the auditorium for the class. It's such a solemn and serious place, who would dare to bring shoe soles and corncobs in?

The teachers were different too; they were all political officers from the military. The men were of lower rank, and the one lecturing was their own husband's superior. Would you dare to slack off in front of your superior?

Being scolded is a small matter, but if it affects a man's promotion, that's a big deal!

The military dependents all knew how this lesson came about, so they vented their resentment on Yuan Juan. They didn't dare to curse her openly, but they said plenty of sarcastic and insinuating things.

Others criticized Zhou Lei, saying, "Yuan Juan's behavior is all because Zhou Lei failed to discipline his wife properly and didn't guide her in self-improvement at home. He's the one who needs a lesson in moral character!"

At this point, everyone forgot that if they hadn't heard about it and kept spreading it around, none of this would have happened.

Zhou Lei was indeed summoned by his political commissar for a lesson on ideology and civility.

"Chairwoman Gu of the Parents' Committee is Commander Ye's wife. With the Parents' Committee involved in this matter, it's impossible for Commander Ye not to know. Xiao Zhou, this is the second time, isn't it? What did you promise me last time here? Have you forgotten?"

Zhou Lei lowered his head: "Political Commissar, this matter has nothing to do with my wife..."

Before he could finish speaking, his political commissar raised his hand to interrupt him, "Whether it is or not, we'll know once we call Comrade Yuan Juan over and ask her."

Zhou Lei fell silent. The questions from the military and the questions from the parents' committee were not the same. If Yuan Juanzhen were called over, she wouldn't be able to hide a single truth from him.

"Fortunately, this matter didn't escalate too much. It was stopped in time when the rumors first started. If it weren't for Xiao Jiang's wife thinking of seeking help from the parents' committee leaders, things might have gotten much worse. You should thank them. Think about it, am I right?"

Zhou Lei nodded. His public persona was that of an honest man, not a fool. If Jiang Zhou's promotion was linked to rumors and the rumors spread outside, it would definitely affect the credibility of the military. If the military found out, they would definitely investigate thoroughly!

By then...

Right now, it's just some military families in the compound chatting idly.

The political commissar patted Zhou Lei on the shoulder and said, "Xiao Zhou, while you are making progress yourself, you must not forget to lead your family members to progress as well. As a cadre, if you don't know how to restrain your family members, it will become a major shortcoming! Think about it carefully."

Zhou Lei gritted his teeth and nodded forcefully, "I understand, Political Commissar."

……

Zhou Lei entered the house, radiating a chill from his body.

After entering the room, he ignored his daughter who came up to him and pulled Yuan Juan into the bedroom.

"What are you doing? What are you doing?" Yuan Juan's wrist was painfully pulled by him, and she tried to pry it off several times but couldn't.

Little Flower was frightened by her father's cold face and shrank behind the table. After the bedroom door closed, she quickly opened it and ran out to find her grandmother.

Aunt Zhou was chatting at her neighbor's house when she saw Xiao Hua running over in a hurry. She thought her granddaughter was just playing around.

Little Flower covered her mouth with both hands and whispered in her ear, "Grandma, Daddy dragged Mommy into the house so fiercely."

Grandma Zhou was startled and, forgetting all her chatting, grabbed her granddaughter and rushed home.

As soon as she entered the house, she heard faint sobbing coming from inside. She quickly closed the front door and knocked on the bedroom door. "Shitou, let's talk this out. You can't resort to violence. She's pregnant."

She also hated Yuan Juan, hated that she had affected Shi Tou and ruined the reputation of her Zhou family, but no matter how much she hated her, she had to wait until the child was born before she could talk about it.

Yuan Juan is not someone to be easily fooled. If you really hit her, she'll make a scene that the whole army will know.

The bedroom door was opened, and Zhou Lei stood in the doorway with a frosty expression, while Yuan Juan lay on the bed crying.

Aunt Zhou peered inside. "They've started?"

Zhou Lei wiped his face. "No, I plan to send her back to her hometown in a few days when I have some free time."